If the Mets requested anything from David Peterson ahead of Saturday’s primetime meeting with the Dodgers, much-needed length had to be atop their wish list. The bullpen was simply taxed in Friday’s marathon loss that featured a 98-minute rain delay and demanded 13 innings. There were a whopping 151 pitches thrown between eight Mets relievers.
Of course, this clear message didn’t need to be conveyed to Peterson. The left-hander understood his assignment, and much to the Mets’ delight, he complied by striking out seven across a season-high 7.2 innings in a feel-good 5-2 win at Citi Field.
While the biggest moment of the game arrived in the fourth inning, when Juan Soto delivered a loud tiebreaking two-run double, Peterson was the unsung hero. He spared an exhausted bullpen that happily put its feet up. He held a vaunted Dodgers lineup in check with effective use of his off-speed pitches. He provided that length the Mets sought.
“That’s a good team over there, they’re always competitive,” Peterson said after the win. “They bring their A-game. To be on the same page with Luis [Torrens] like we were and have the execution like we did was really nice… I tried to give these guys everything I had and go as deep as I could… When you’re playing a team with the talent they have, the competitive nature they bring, it obviously heightens your game. It heightens your senses.”
Perhaps the main takeaway from Peterson’s outing was how he made one of the game’s greatest hitters look undeniably human. He struck out Dodgers superstar Shohei Ohtani three times, and that third and final takedown in the eighth inning marked the end to his welcomed night. He also got the best of veteran stars Mookie Betts and Freddie Freeman, who went a combined 1-for-8.
Peterson was by no means untouchable — he allowed two runs on five hits and two walks, and threw 59 of his 99 total pitches for strikes. But the 29-year-old navigated early trouble, collected himself, and kept the Dodgers off the board from the second inning on. He called Ohtani “just another hitter” after the game, only because he treats each opponent in the box with the same level of respect.
If length from Peterson was the Mets’ top request, him handing the ball off to Edwin Diaz was listed right below it. The star closer did his job, too, recording a four-out save and improving to 11-for-11 in save opportunities.
“That’s a big boy’s performance there,” Mets manager Carlos Mendoza said of Peterson’s effort. “For him to go back out for the eighth and keeping the game there and giving us a chance to win a baseball game, that was pretty impressive. I thought the way he used all his pitches — the sinker was really good. The changeup, the slider, the way he mixed. Groundballs when needed. That was pretty impressive there.”
Peterson, who lowered his season ERA to 2.79 (10 starts), became the Mets’ second rotation member to throw seven-plus innings in a game this season. He’s also logged four straight quality starts (six total), and his innings (58.0) and strikeout (54) marks rank first and second, respectively, among Mets pitchers.
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